A common type of computer pointing device is known as, or referred to as, a pointing stick, also known as an isometric joystick. A pointing stick may generally be thought of as a small joystick, although the application and implementation of joysticks and pointing sticks are generally different. For example, a pointing stick generally has little or no range of movement. Pointing sticks are frequently used in place of, or as an adjunct to, other pointing devices, e.g., computer mice, where space is critical. For example, it is known to place pointing sticks within a laptop computer keyboard, e.g., between the “G,” “H” and “B” keys.
It is known to measure a force and direction applied to a pointing stick and convert that information into a cursor movement direction and/or speed. A common method of measuring such a force is to measure the resistance of a strained material coupled to the pointing stick. Unfortunately, such force-based pointing sticks are subject to “cursor drift,” a ubiquitous problem among pointing sticks, requiring frequent recalibration. In addition, such force measurements generally require more power than desired, especially for battery based systems, including laptop computers and/or wireless mice.